Holst – The Planets; Bax – Tintagel
London Symphony Orchestra; Sir Antonio Pappano
LSO Live LSO0904 (hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_LSO0904-D)
Sir Antonio Pappano is beginning a series of recordings with his new orchestra, the London Symphony, one of the most redoubtable orchestral institutions on the planet. This is the third release in what so far has been British music, two discs of Vaughan Williams symphonies, and this one featuring two masterpieces from the height of the modern British Musical Renaissance, Gustav Holst’s suite, The Planets, and Arnold Bax’s mighty tone poem Tintagel. This is a major new release featuring performances that herald Pappano’s committed dedication to this repertoire. He has been labouring at the Royal Opera for decades honing his skills, and is now showing them off in performances of special heft and insight. His intensity reminds me a little of Barbirolli who always seemed to bring a measure of extra insight to anything he performed.
It is terrific to have this pairing in such fine performances, so well recorded in spite of the usual LSO venue, the Barbican Center, which still seems a little dry but provides unflinching clarity. Pappano’s The Planets offers a profound take on this ubiquitous piece. It is so well scored that it is hard to get it wrong, so it is always impressive, but here we have a weight and sense of purpose that is rare. The hideously prophetic Mars is monstrous and more exhausting than usual, and the Saturn movement which is awesomely drawn out is shattering in its moments of panic and despair. Venus is serene and seems timeless and somehow chaste, less sensuous than usual. The virtuoso vocal group Tenebrae provide the chilly, eerie chorus depicting the vastness of the cosmos, as Neptune fades into nothingness.
The fact that the performance of Tintagel may provide one of its best takes on record makes this new disc irresistible. The orchestral sonority is fierce and detailed, capturing every nuance of the elemental orchestration. This description of the castle crowned cliff on the Cornish Coast with its magnificent engulfing wave crashes is overwhelming and one can feel the wetness of the surges. Listening to this disc is nothing short of intoxicating.
